


𝑊𝑎𝑟 𝑂𝑓 𝐻𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑠

by PuddyGeeks



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Abduction, Angst, Awkward Conversations, Awkward Flirting, Awkwardness, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Kidnapping, M/M, Near Death Experiences, Shyness, Slow Build, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-15 14:27:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29315562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PuddyGeeks/pseuds/PuddyGeeks
Summary: 𝐴𝑙𝑖𝑐𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒 𝑡𝑜 ℎ𝑒𝑙𝑝 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑙𝑒 𝑜𝑝𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠. 𝑊𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐵𝐴𝑈 𝑓𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑦, 𝑚𝑎𝑦𝑏𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑏𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑜 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑡.
Relationships: Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/William LaMontagne Jr., Penelope Garcia & Original Female Character(s), Penelope Garcia/Derek Morgan, Spencer Reid/Original Female Character(s), Spencer Reid/Reader
Comments: 2
Kudos: 17





	1. 𝑊𝑎𝑟 𝑂𝑓 𝐻𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑠

𝑊𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑦.


	2. 𝐶𝑎𝑠𝑡

𝐺𝑒𝑚𝑚𝑎 𝐴𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑠

𝑨𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝑯𝒂𝒘𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒆

𝑀𝑎𝑡𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑤 𝐺𝑟𝑎𝑦 𝐺𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑠

𝑫𝒓 𝑺𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒓 𝑹𝒆𝒊𝒅

𝐿𝑢𝑘𝑒 𝐸𝑣𝑎𝑛𝑠 𝑎𝑠

𝑬́𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒏𝒆 𝑽𝒊𝒅𝒂𝒍

𝐼𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝐺𝑙𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑠

𝑫𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒅 𝑨𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏

𝑀𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑠𝑎 𝐿𝑒𝑜 𝑎𝑠

𝑳𝒊𝒍𝒚 𝑯𝒂𝒘𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒆/𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏

𝑇𝑜𝑏𝑦 𝐽𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑠

𝑹𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏

𝐸𝑙𝑖𝑎𝑠 𝐻𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑠

𝑱𝒐𝒆𝒚 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏

𝐴𝑣𝑎𝑛 𝐽𝑜𝑔𝑖𝑎 𝑎𝑠

𝑹𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒏 (𝑹𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒚) 𝑩𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒋𝒆𝒆

𝐴𝑖𝑠ℎ𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑦𝑎 𝑅𝑎𝑖 𝐵𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑠

𝑵𝒂𝒃𝒉𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒂 𝑩𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒋𝒆𝒆

𝐾𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑊𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑙𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑠

𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏

𝐻𝑖𝑟𝑜 𝐾𝑎𝑛𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑤𝑎 𝑎𝑠

𝑨𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑺𝒉𝒆𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒅

Eᴠᴇʀʏᴏɴᴇ ᴇʟsᴇ ᴀs ɴᴏʀᴍᴀʟ!

𝑾𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔: 𝐺𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑎𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡, 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑔𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤. 𝑃𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑏𝑒 𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑐𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑢𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑟, 𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 & 𝑠𝑒𝑥𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑏𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑎𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐵𝐴𝑈'𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘. 𝐼𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑚𝑦 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑡𝑜 ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑙𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑎𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑖𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑓𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑎𝑔𝑒𝑑, 𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑡 𝑚𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤.

𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒓: 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑑 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠, 𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑠 𝑜𝑓 "𝐶𝑟𝑖𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑀𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑠" 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑙𝑖𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝐶𝐵𝑆 𝑇𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑆𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑖𝑜𝑠, 𝐴𝐵𝐶 𝑆𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑖𝑜𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑘 𝐺𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑜𝑛 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑦. 𝑂𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑦 𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐼 𝑐𝑙𝑎𝑖𝑚 𝑛𝑜 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑛. 𝑁𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑞𝑢𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑢𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑟. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑦 𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑒𝑚𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑎 𝑚𝑜𝑜𝑑, 𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑎𝑑𝑑 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑎 𝑐𝑎𝑠𝑒, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑠 𝑠𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑢𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑟 𝑎𝑠 𝑚𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑎𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒.

Dedicated to Lyss who beta reads and lends me her expert insight into the CM characters.


	3. 𝑽𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒐

The smell of stale coffee was overpowering, almost more so than the lack of daylight in the room. Overworking was common practice here and as such, caffeine addiction was deeply ingrained into our culture. I was relieved to have my own office to allow me to focus away from the highly strung teams that depended on me. Topping up my teacup from the pot, I continued to scan my eyes through the various databases in search of something to provide us with a lead. 

My eyelids were heavy from exhaustion as I battled to hold my concentration and almost jumped out of my chair as a shrill phone rang from the back of the desk. It was a secure line that I’d set up a while ago, but seldom ever used and I quickly got to my feet to close the door before picking up the handset.

“Wonderland.” The careful voice announced a code that prompted a smile to fill my lips and I was immediately flooded with a warm sense of appreciation as I recognised them.

“Well, it’s been some time since I heard that.” I muttered curtly, settling back into my seat and a small satisfied sound on the other end of the line seemed to indicate that she was relieved to have confirmed my identity. “You’re certainly working late, aren’t you?”

“You know how it is. Monsters to catch.” Penelope sighed, allowing me the chance to catch the fatigue in her voice that likely would have been easily missed by anyone else. “Speaking of which, I have a problem.” She confessed, causing me to lean forward with riveted interest. 

“We’ve got one of your boys causing mayhem over here. Your agents are keeping suspiciously schtum on it, territorial as ever. My team wants to stick with the case. I can’t ask for official permission to access Interpol files when we’ve been told to drop it, but if I could just get five minutes in the system…” She trailed off suggestively and I chuckled lightly to myself.

“You’re losing your touch, My Queen. I would have expected you to have found your way in already.” I teased, referring to the name that I’d once known her by as I set to work on bringing up the files of the case. I didn’t need specifics to clarify, I knew exactly which criminal my team was after that had required them to fly to the States to investigate and I heard her sigh.

“Any other time, you know that I would hack first and deny knowledge later, but I can’t plead ignorance on something that we’ve already been clearly told to stay away from.” She groaned, her frustration obvious even over the phone and I began typing rapidly as a plan formulated in my mind.

“I can’t allow access to a foreign agency, my dear. The other techs would rat me out before you’d even found anything.” I explained, chewing on my lip as I entered line after line of code in an attempt to outsmart my colleagues with techniques that would never be used in an official capacity. “However, if a back door was accidentally left open during maintenance, I couldn’t be held responsible for anything that might creep in.” I thought aloud as I sped through screens with a wicked smile, knowing that I could easily avoid any blame this way.

“I’ve assigned all of the correct credentials. Anything that you access will appear as if it’s me doing admin in the case, but be careful. It’s a very limited disguise that won’t last long if anyone starts to dig at it. I can keep our techs busy for a little while, but you know that subtly isn’t my strong suit. Get out before you’re noticed.” I instructed as I entered the last few commands and could already hear her making preparations for the task.

“Oh, sweetheart. I will be gone before they even know what hit them.” She breezed, her voice filled with a confidence that was contagious and I took a deep breath as I allowed it to pass onto me.

“Launching now.” I confirmed, as I entered the final key and my screen began filling with pages of data. “Make it worthwhile. Catch the bastard.”

\--⥈--

“You think it’s an inside agent?”

My sector chief stared me down with an intensely disbelieving expression and I struggled to keep my nervousness from showing. It was incredibly nerve wracking to suggest this in a team where I was already the odd one out, but I couldn’t allow my own insecurities to prevent us from getting justice. Ever since I had started here, I’d had the deep rooted feeling that none of my colleagues approved of the decision to recruit someone who should have been arrested and the disdain always seemed most powerful when addressing the man before me.

“That is my belief, Sir.” I answered, hoping that he wouldn’t notice my false confidence and I forced myself to hold his gaze as he crossed his arms. “Valeno has successfully dodged every digital trap that I’ve laid. He’s avoided multiple agencies now and essentially vanished without a trace. It wouldn’t be possible to achieve that without inside knowledge of the measures that we are taking.” I explained, carefully presenting my theory and he remained unmoved as he studied me, causing me to gulp in discomfort.

“Find me proof, Hawthorne. I can’t call a witch hunt based on your bitterness against this team.” Shepard responded coldly, turning his back on me without another word to take a seat at his desk and I gulped down the anger that I felt at this unfair accusation. When I remained rooted to the spot in confusion, he simply gestured for me to show myself out.

I stomped back to my office with my cheeks burning in humiliation and closed the door behind me so that I could sink down against it with my face in my hands. It was endlessly frustrating to have invested so much time into pursuing this trafficking ring, only to have them continuously avoid capture. I was exhausted by this case, unable to remember my last day off since I was assigned to it and I could feel that I was running out of ideas, as I faced a heart breaking lack of support.

A loud alert on my computer pulled me from my wallowing and I rushed into my seat with interest. Flashing on my screen was a warning that made my stomach lurch and I stared at it with wide eyes. After months of silence, someone had finally accessed one of the booby trapped files.

I jumped into action, entering commands at lightning speed and became determined to capture whomever it was that had been defeating me for many long months. They were quick, evading my tactics with ease and I found myself engaged in a maddening game of digital hide and seek in the various systems. It was immediately clear that I was dealing with a professional and I cursed under my breath as I strained to keep up with them, setting fresh traps as I worked in the hope of preventing their escape.

“Oh no you don’t, you little bugger! Not today!” I hissed under my breath, feeling sweet on my brow as I fretted that one wrong move could lose them forever.

As I watched them evade my tracking, then jump straight into blocking me out with expert knowledge, a memory stirred in the back of my mind. The theory rapidly took hold and I wasted no time in throwing out a manoeuvre that I knew would cause a bolt of familiarity if the culprit was who I suspected. Barely moments later, my screen fizzled in error, before displaying a bizarre Tetris overlay that could only be the signature of one person and I gasped, reaching for the phone in a fluster. I could hardly dial the number properly with my shaking hands and stumbled over my words as they answered hurriedly.

“Tell me that you’re the person flooding my system with Tetris right now!” I spat, cutting her off before she could even speak and I heard the noisy typing on the other end rapidly stop.

“I knew it! You’re the only hacker I know that would use Alice in Wonderland riddles to throw me off!” Penelope gasped with excitement and I released a breath that I didn’t even know I had been holding in relief. It had been almost six months since I last heard her voice and although I would usually be pleased to speak to her, I couldn’t help a wave of disappointment at the realisation that I hadn’t caught anyone connected to the case. 

“Well done, Reid! I just almost hacked our best chance of cracking your sicko lady thief. Thank god for your crazy book memory.” I heard her chatting to someone in the background and cleared my throat to regain her attention.

“I’d recognise those moves anywhere. You’re the only person that aggressive in code. What are you doing in my case?” I asked, rubbing at my temples in confusion and though I could hear someone barraging her with questions about who she was talking to, she remained obediently focused on me.

“Your case? I’m researching an abduction for the team.” She revealed, sounding as if she hadn’t even realised what was happening yet and I felt my eyes widen in horror. “Wait a second. Interpol is on this?” She breathed, causing sounds of shock to echo from whoever was in her background and I leapt to my feet as my thoughts bounced around in my mind.

“Penelope, I need you to send me everything you have. Right now! I think you’ve got a much bigger problem on your hands than you even know.” I ordered, flicking through the case files that covered my desk in a fluster and without a moment of hesitation, the details began to pop up on my screen. As I acknowledged the matching signature to the photos on my desk, I held a hand to my mouth in shock. 

“Valeno.” I whispered as adrenaline shot through my entire body and I grabbed my phone as I began marching through the halls of the office. “Get your Unit Chief ready for a call. I’m taking this to the chief now.” I instructed, before hanging up and striding confidently back toward the office that I’d been so rudely dismissed from a short while ago.

Without awaiting permission, I barged inside and switched on the monitor on the wall. I flicked it to the channel that connected to my station and displayed the crime scene photos that were sent by Penelope. At first, Shepard seemed irritated by the brashness of my approach, but as I flicked through the photos with a determined energy, understanding dawned on his features. 

“Look familiar?” I suggested, before spreading the case files out on the table to further explain my point. “Every single detail, exactly the same. Matching victimology, no forensics detected at the scene, no ransom. He’s back.” I insisted, pointing out each fact with a passion that I had rarely allowed to show since I joined this role and he stared up at the screen with conviction.

“Where?”

“Virginia, United States. It’s just like I said. He’s trying to hop jurisdiction to exploit the black spots between agencies and avoid detection.” I explained, feeling equally validated and frustrated that my theory had been correct. This meant that more lives had been destroyed by this man and the realisation caused a wave of nausea to wash over me.

“Sir, the FBI are late to this. They’re only just linking the abductions together. We could get ahead of him this time, if we assisted.” I appealed, holding my hands out in exasperation and he finally tore his eyes from the screen to examine me with an unreadable face.

“You have contact with the team?” He enquired curiously and I nodded in confirmation.

“Yes, Sir. Their Unit Chief is waiting for your call.” I presented, afraid to move a single muscle for risk of damaging the fragile alliance and after a few minutes of tense silence, he finally sighed.

“Set up the meeting through Lucy.” He instructed, causing me to almost run from the room to find our case coordinator, before he called out to stop me.

“If they accept our support, we’ll be heading over to join the team.” He stated calmly and I held my breath as I paused on the spot. “You know his patterns better than anyone. You think you can catch this mole?”

“Yes, Sir.” I asserted, the words escaping my lips before I’d even had the chance to consider them and for the first time, he softened his expression as he viewed me.

“Then you’d better get ready to travel. You’ll be joining us.”

\--⥈--

There was something awfully intimidating about entering the FBI headquarters, despite my own professional background. I hesitated at the back of the team, unsure about the etiquette of these kinds of scenarios as I’d never worked on a shared agency case in person, unlike the others. My skills were shared between multiple Interpol teams and as a result, I didn’t have a bond with anyone, especially not in the group that I’d travelled with.

The rest of the agents seemed completely at home as they stepped out of the elevator and made a beeline for the main BAU office, whilst I slowed to a stop in the reception, feeling too overwhelmed to continue.

Everything felt immensely bigger than I was used to and the entire process had been so rushed that I’d hardly had a chance to process any of it. This was my first visit to the States at all in many years and I couldn’t catch up with the emotional effect of this. I brushed the hair that had escaped my scruffy braid out of my face and attempted to straighten out my clothes, convinced that I appeared completely haggard after being made to attend the office straight from a long flight. 

I took a deep breath and forced myself to push open the glass doors to join my team, only to be ambushed before I could.

“Wonderland!” An excitable voice cheered from my side and I turned to find a very colourful woman with a huge mane of bright blonde hair barrelling toward me.

“Penelope Von Troublemaker.” I chuckled as she swept me into a hug that almost knocked me from my already unsteady feet. She smelt fruity and fresh as she squeezed the life out of me and I wheezed for breath.

“It’s wonderful to see you at last, but I really do need to breathe, my dear.” I wheezed, prompting her to quickly jump back, leaving only her hands on my shoulders as she beamed at me.

“You’re so pretty, even more so in person! And classy too. Look at you in your head to toe black chic. I love it.” She breathed, scanning my full appearance with excitement radiating off her in waves and I managed a nervous smile in response. I still remembered Penelope as a late teen with an attitude problem, who often engaged me in fierce competition and was glad to find that adulthood had encouraged her to embrace her natural sparkle.

“Sir. I’m going to take Alice straight to my office to set up, okay? Cool. Thanks.” She called over toward the rest of the office carelessly, pulling me along behind her without even awaiting a response and I couldn’t help giggling to myself as I followed.

Penelope’s office was exactly what I had imagined, full of the same sunshine attitude that she radiated. Her desk was littered with cute figures, bright photos and pen pots filled with fuzzy tipped biros. She had more screens mounted all over the walls than I could even have applied for permission for at Interpol and I noticed that there was a small space at one end of the surface which was completely clear, with a second office chair tucked under it.

“You’re gonna be right here, next to me. If we’re gonna beat this guy, I figured we should team up, just like the old days.” She explained with a fond smile and I felt myself relaxing already in her warm company. “Just go ahead and drop your laptop stuff there and then I can show you where to store the rest of your stuff until we can take you to your hotel.” She instructed, indicating to my small case.

“Oh. This is everything that I have with me.” I answered bashfully, shuffling inside to begin setting up my laptop in the space indicated, whilst Penelope studied me with confusion.

“You don’t have a separate go bag?” She investigated, seeming thoroughly shocked by how little I had with me and I shrugged in return.

“I don’t really ‘go’, Penelope.” I chuckled as I busied myself with plugging everything in and noticed that her expression seemed concerned now. “I didn’t have much notice. I grabbed all of my casefiles and the laptop stuff that I could carry, and then just whatever personal items I could think of. You’ll have to forgive me if I’m not as well presented as you expected. I don’t travel much nowadays.” I added, hoping that this would settle her curiosity but instead she took a seat beside me and scrutinised me thoroughly.

“Why not? Hotch and Gideon even send  _ me _ out when I’m needed and I don’t have a psychology degree.” She commented as she raised her brows at me, as if she needed to remind me of my own education and I simply shrugged avoidantly. “Are Interpol not making good use of you, Sugar? Whose career do I need to ruin?” She threatened, already seeming riled by the idea and I smiled at her protectiveness.

“It’s more complicated than that. Let’s crack this case and then we get into personal catch ups later, okay?” I suggested, much to her disappointment and my relief, we settled into work.

We spent the next hour comparing information and plotting possible traps, whilst Shepard and the rest of my team busied themselves with integrating into the local team and finding places to work. It was refreshing to work alongside someone for a change and having her input prompted new ideas. 

After a while, the phone rang and Penelope leaned over to answer it on speakerphone so that she could continue examining the document that was between us.

“Hey, baby girl. Tell me you’ve got some good news for me.” A deep voice crooned, causing my attention to bolt upward in confusion, only to find Penelope smirking in satisfaction.

“Well, gorgeous, that I do. I am still 100% single, interested and available for dinner whenever you need.” She announced, earning a chuckle from the man on the line and I quirked a brow at her inquisitively. 

“Also, the Interpol team just arrived. So I have now upgraded to the office of Unrivalled Girl Power, baby.” She added with delight and I felt my curiosity growing by the minute as she spoke.

“That was fast. Alright, Gideon and I will make our way back now. This lead was a bust.” He confirmed, revealing that he was actually a member of her team and I raised my brows in surprise at her demeanour.

“Don’t keep me waiting too long.” She drawled in a husky tone, before hanging up and attempting to return to her work with a smile. I playfully slapped her hands away from the files and thinned my eyes at her.

“I’m sorry. Are you really going to try to gloss over  _ that _ ? Explain, please!” I insisted, leaning closer to her in fascination and she chuckled as she shook her head dismissively. “Who  _ was _ that, Penelope?” I gasped, feeling as if I might explode from the mystery and she attempted to swat me away.

“That was Derek Morgan. He’s one of the behavioural analysts and a dear friend.” She began, only causing my brows to raise impossibly further and she leaned closer into me to lower her voice. “He’s also an absolute  _ hunk _ of a man, but you’ll see that in a bit.” She winked, suppressing a cheeky cackle and I felt my mouth drop open in shock.

“And do you speak to all of your dear friends like that, or is he special? He sounds special.” I hissed, grilling her like an excited teenager again, falling straight back into our old friendship as if no time had passed at all and she laughed heartily.

“Oh, please. Nothing wrong with a little workplace flirtation to brighten the day. You know what I mean! You work in Europe. You’re surrounded by romance.” She muttered dismissively as she returned her attention to her screens and I shook my head.

“I absolutely do not! You have no idea, Nels. Europe is not inherently romantic.” I drawled, rolling my eyes at her ignorance and she glanced back at me with a disbelieving smirk. 

“I’m serious. Most of the men at Interpol either think that they’re the real life incarnation of James Bond, collecting as many Bond girls as possible, or they’re married to their work. It’s honestly rather dull. Nothing like you and Agent Morgan. That conversation sounded like a lot more than just playful banter to me. You two have chemistry!” I insisted, a smug smile filling my lips as I viewed her and she quickly brushed me off.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Ally.” She breathed, the slightest hint of a blush filling her cheeks and I made a mental note to revisit this later. “We need to get our strategy ready. Hotch will call a meeting once Morgan and Gideon get back.”

“Garcia, do you have the suspect list that I asked you to pull? I want to run through it before the meeting.” A voice interrupted from the door and I turned to find a tall, slim young man waiting keenly.

“Oh, yes! Let me just get it printed for you.” Penelope answered, pushing the files aside to access her keyboard. “I’m sorry. I got distracted with helping Alice to settle in.” She added, before glancing at me to realise that he and I were looking at each other with interest.

“Ah, of course! Alice, this is Dr Spencer Reid, one of our behavioural analysts. Reid, this is Alice Hawthorne from Interpol. She’s a very old friend.” Penelope introduced with a flourish before returning to her task and I jumped to my feet to shake his hand, only for him to wave awkwardly instead. Though it was an interesting quirk, I was relieved as I hated contact with strangers and was glad that I would have at least one less person that I would have to endure it with. 

“You’re the hacker with the Alice in Wonderland riddles?” He offered, viewing me with interest and I felt my cheeks turning pink the moment that I met his hypnotising hazel eyes. Now I recognised his voice from my call with Garcia and remembered the questions he’d been asking in the background after his rather embarrassing introduction to my work.

“Um, yes. I don’t usually do that. I had a feeling that it was Penelope and I knew that she would understand that. Or at least, I hoped that she would.” I offered, shuffling awkwardly on the spot and he nodded in understanding.

He was dressed remarkably smart compared to many of the other FBI agents, but still had an air of his own style about him that interested me. His neatly combed back hair complimented his handsomely chiselled features and I soon found myself struggling for something to say. I already considered myself to be somewhat socially challenged, but especially when it came to interacting with someone who was unexpectedly well matched to everything that I found attractive, I was a hot mess.

“It’s an interesting choice. Did you know that it was actually rated as one of the world's most influential novels? It’s full of nonsensical rhymes that could easily be used to create a rather complicated ruse, as not many people would know the answers offhand.” He complimented in what I assumed was an attempt to make me feel better about my rather childish tactics and I smiled in appreciation of his kindness.

“There’s actually a rare disorder named after it that is characterised by distortions of visual perception, the body image and the experience of time.” He began to explain and I couldn’t keep myself from interrupting him in excitement.

“Todd’s Syndrome, or dysmetropsia, right?” I interjected, causing his brows to shoot up in surprise and Penelope actually paused what she was doing to turn and look at us both in disbelief. “I’ve never encountered it, but I did study it in depth. It was actually the topic of my dissertation at university.” I clarified, causing a wide smile to spread across his face as he considered me and I could feel Penelope smirking at me from my peripheral vision.

“Your suspect list, Reid?” She offered, clearing her throat as she leaned toward him with a piece of paper and he seemed to shake himself back to reality to take it.

“Yes. Thank you, Garcia.” He blustered, taking it from her in a distracted manner and running his finger down the page at an impossible speed to have actually read anything. Before I could question this, he glanced back up in shock and his posture became alarmed. “I have to get this to Hotch. Nice to meet you, Alice!” He called as he rushed from the room and left Penelope and I silently communicating our confusion to each other.

“Okay, Miss Thing. You can’t sit there and tell me that you don’t flirt at work, and then do  _ that _ right in front of me.” She crooned, looking after Reid with a mischievous appreciation and I turned back to face her with a shrug, hoping that I could conceal my bashful reaction. “Oh, you want to play innocent? I see how it is. Well, I’m not fooled. I know what I saw and I’m not one to forget.”


	4. 𝑹𝒐𝒄𝒌, 𝑴𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆

As I followed Penelope toward the meeting room for our afternoon briefing, I could feel a lump in my throat caused by nerves. She had decided that we should arrive first to allow her a chance to introduce me to the members of her team and I reluctantly agreed. I didn’t exactly have the most successful history with work colleagues.

We stepped into the room to find a pretty blonde woman busying herself with setting out case files and generally preparing the space for use, and though I felt awkward interrupting her, Penelope charged in without hesitation.

“What’s for dinner, mom?” She teased brightly, prompting the young woman to glance up with a fond smile. “Alice and I thought we’d help with setting up. We’ll handle the tech for you.” Penelope explained, causing the woman's brows to shoot up in surprise and she glanced over at me curiously.

“You’re Agent Hawthorne, Interpol's technical analyst?” She asked casually and though I was caught off guard by her knowledge, I nodded back politely. “I was planning to greet you on arrival, but Garcia whisked you away before I got the chance. I’m Jennifer Jareau, communications liaison for the BAU.” She introduced herself confidently, stepping forward to shake my hand and I could sense the motherly warmth in her that Penelope had referenced before, allowing it to relax me enough to manage a response.

“Yikes. You’ve got the toughest job of all. The press.” I commented, causing an appreciative chuckle. “Alice is fine. I’m not really into formalities.” I added with a smile and she eagerly returned it as she finished laying out papers.

“Great. You can call me JJ. Garcia, if you two are happy to do the rest, I’ll get everyone’s drinks ready. God only knows when they last took a break.” She offered, waiting for Penelope’s approval before beginning to collect mugs from a nearby cupboard. “I made sure to get some breakfast tea stocked for you all. Alice, do you want a cup, or are you more of a coffee girl?”

“She’s  _ all _ about the tea. At this point, I’m honestly pretty sure that her blood stream is more tea than anything else.” Penelope answered before I could even open my mouth and JJ wasted no time in rushing toward the kitchen. 

I rolled my eyes at my friend’s teasing, but she didn’t display an ounce of shame at my judgement and I found myself standing around awkwardly as I awaited instruction. I was usually a proactive person, but after months of disrespect in Interpol, I’d learned to stay out of the way and mostly attempted to not cause any problems.

“I’ll get the screens ready. Alice, if you could get your laptop set up with the case files and I’ll use mine to present our plan.” Garcia instructed as she began fiddling with the display on the wall and I obediently placed my laptop on the table, before crawling underneath to plug in a power adapter to allow me to use the European device. 

Fortunately, Penelope had already thought of everything for my workspace with her, but I still needed to provide for myself everywhere else.

“My mug is missing. I left it on my desk. Have you seen anyone in my office in the past ten minutes?”

I overheard someone questioning Garcia in a stressed voice and as I slowly slid out from under the table, I noticed that the person was almost blocking my exit, giving me a clear view of their bright white trainers and blue jeans which seemed entirely too informal for the setting. Their gaze fell on me immediately as I straightened up to find an older man with greying hair and thin framed glasses examining me with a deep confusion.

“Who’s this?” He enquired toward Garcia, whilst maintaining his intense scrutiny of me and I struggled under his investigation, feeling a flood of insecurity.

“This is Alice from Interpol, Sir. Alice, this is SSA Gideon. He’s our unit chief.” Penelope spluttered, seeming equally unnerved by his arrival and he gave me a rushed handshake, before seeming distracted again. “JJ just went to make some drinks for the round table. She might have your mug, Sir.” She answered, prompting him to dart from the room impatiently.

“Gideon’s intense and at times eccentric, but brilliant. You get used to him.” Penelope muttered under her breath with a wink and I released a sigh that I’d been holding due to nerves.

We settled at the table together as we made the final preparations for our portion of the meeting and JJ returned to place a mug of tea beside me with a warm smile. She took the seat on my other side, almost as if she was protecting me from my team and I knew that she had already been reading my behaviour to identify my discomfort. My anxiety rose at the sight of the rest of my team approaching the doors, led by a man that I didn’t recognise and I prayed that their lack of faith in my abilities would not pass onto the BAU team.

They filed into the meeting room, cramping it with their bodies, followed by Reid and Gideon, who was gripping a mug of coffee rather protectively. They were deeply engaged in a hushed conversation, until the unfamiliar man stepped forward to call us to attention. 

“Good afternoon, everyone. I’m Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner. This is our first joint agency case with Interpol in some time, so I would like to start by reminding everyone that we are now a joint task force. All required information will be shared freely and case details for both investigations will be openly available. We welcome the Interpol teams guidance as the primary investigators for this case.”

Agent Hotchner made Gideon’s expression seem thoroughly welcoming by comparison and despite his words sounding warm, his face remained set in a permanent state of disapproval. I wondered how Penelope managed to work under someone so deadly serious, despite her constant need to treat everything as a joke and decided to ask more about him later. As he paused, another agent rushed into the room, closing the door behind him and took a standing position behind Penelope.

“Morgan, did you find anything at the warehouse?” 

Agent Hotchner turned to the newcomer with a hopeful expression, only to receive a subtle shake of the head in return. I glanced over at the agent in question, sudden recognition at the name striking me and couldn’t deny that he was handsome. It wasn’t surprising that Penelope became so distracted around him, but fortunately my tastes were different enough to avoid sharing this issue. 

“Let's start with the basics. Shepard, I’ll let you open with your cases.” The BAU leader easily drew the attention of the meeting as he commenced conversation and Shepard got to his feet with a confidence that unsettled me.

“The group that we are looking for is a well established human trafficking ring that have been working in Europe for at least four years. They first came under our radar when their leader was murdered by his ambitious second in command, a man that we have identified as Robert Valeno.” 

Shepard brought up a photo of the man who had dominated my psyche for longer than I cared to admit. Valeno was a prominent figure in my nightmares, as he continued to be impossible to catch and I regularly obsessed over the awful things that he could be doing to people whilst we floundered around behind him.

“Valeno has expanded their operation substantially since he took control and has proven to be an expert in evading justice. Every time that we get close he vanishes, only to appear in another country. So far, we’ve managed to connect twenty missing women to him, but realistically, we estimate the number is more likely to be in the hundreds.”

Penelope set the screens to flick through the images of the victims that we had managed to identify and I felt my stomach lurch. I didn’t need to see the photos, each of their faces was burned into my mind as a waking nightmare that only worsened when I closed my eyes. Each and every one of them represented a failure to me, another girl who would never know freedom again. 

As Shepard stepped aside, JJ took his place to present the new details.

“Four months ago, local PDs in multiple states began noticing a dramatic increase in their missing persons, particularly women from the ages of fourteen to thirty-five.” JJ explained as she redirected the conversation to the American portion of the case and I was met with a new set of faces that I knew I would be unable to forget. Before she could continue, Gideon jumped in with his own opinions about our suspect.

“Valeno has mostly targeted women who were low risk. No family, no job, no connections and until now, anyone who did not meet that criteria was deemed to have been a mistake. Now, he is targeting any female who matches his desired age range. That tells us that he is growing more confident and likely catering to a wealthier clientele. He’s comfortable in his methods and clearly believes that he has successfully escaped the pursuit of law enforcement in Europe.” He revealed, having already begun speculating on the cause of this change in victimology and Morgan sat forward with interest, as if he had noticed something.

“How did he manage to even get to the States if he was on Interpol’s radar?” Morgan asked, glancing around the table in confusion and whilst the rest of my team seemed offended by the question, I noticed that Shepard was staring directly at me, as if the responsibility for this laid primarily at my feet.

“That’s where we need to start.” I stated, drawing the attention of the room and I strained to keep my nerves from showing in my demeanour as I continued.

“He wasn’t just on our radar. His picture was circulated everywhere, MI5, ESISC, border control, immigration and transport services. I blocked every known alias that he has, had software scanning CCTV for his face. We set up roadblocks, monitored drug busts and even placed digital traps. It should have been impossible for him to travel anywhere.” I explained, allowing a hint of my frustration to flow into my words and it was clear that everyone was considering the tactics used for any further ideas. Reid drew my attention as the first person that I noticed who did not seem to be blaming me for this failure, instead thinning his eyes reflectively.

“That level of evasion would indicate an exceptionally high intelligence and knowledge of law enforcement, border policies and even technical expertise. If he’s also present at the time of abduction and responsible for the transport of his acquisitions, it wouldn’t leave any time for the rest of his roles. Which means he has some high level employees with an in depth knowledge of the organisation. Have you discovered any of his accomplices?” Reid enquired, rapidly realising the flaw in my information and I smiled at how easily he had noticed the discrepancy that I had been pointing out for months, much to the teams irritation.

“The guy is a ghost. There’s no threads to follow.” I sighed, still feeling disappointed in the minimal information that I’d been able to dig up about Valeno. “What we do know is that he has at least employed technical help. The skills that I’ve encountered are far too advanced to belong to someone who has any priorities other than hacking. I can also confirm that it is not the same person that he was using in Europe.” I added, causing Shepard to furrow his brows at me. 

“How can you be sure of that?” He asked, already dismissing my opinion and I was flustered by this subtle dig against my knowledge.

“I’ve compared the logs from my laptop to the digital attacks that the BAU experienced when they tried to track him. They’re completely different.” I argued, only causing him to seem doubtful and I felt my gut twist in annoyance. 

It was one thing for him to disregard me within our own agency, but I didn’t appreciate his lack of interest in my input when we were surrounded by new people and felt my temper fuelling me to elaborate on this theory, even if I knew that my team would likely not understand the relevance.

“There are hundreds of ways to do things when it comes to cyber activity and every hacker has their own methods.” I began, attempting to simplify the experience that Penelope and I had gathered over the years into something that could assist in the profile. “Think of it like their signature. This new person operates in a more aggressive manner, whereas the original person that he was using was all defensive. He’s not waiting for us to find him. He’s seeking us out, almost challenging us. I analysed the commands that he uses and they’re much more commonly taught in the United States than any other part of the world.”

There were a few moments of silence as people processed the babble of technical talk that I had just spewed at them and Penelope smiled proudly from my side. Shepard seemed lost for words, despite his ongoing desire to undermine me and I noticed that several members of the BAU team were now watching me with interest, especially Morgan.

“So, he’s making new contacts. That gives us new opportunities to infiltrate his network.” He clarified, making it clear that he trusted my experience on this matter and I nodded at him confidently, noticing Penelope smiling at him with extra appreciation as she took over the technical talk.

“Because this new hacker is aggressive, we may be able to draw them out. Alice and I have planned a bait and switch situation. With your permission, Sir, and our combined expertise, we can have your hacker trapped and traced.” Penelope presented our plan with a faith in her leader that was unfamiliar to me and I awaited his answer with baited breath.

“Absolutely. Keep me updated.” He agreed as he permitted us without a moment of hesitation and I was shocked by how easy it had been to gain his permission. 

“Reid. Morgan. Go to the latest crime scene. We need to get an idea of how he operates. Gideon and I will take the rest of the Interpol team to the local PD.” Hotchner announced, immediately getting to his feet and setting the room into a buzz of activity. 

I was frantic as I gathered my things to follow Penelope and could still hardly believe that we hadn’t needed to fight to be able to put our plan into motion. I piled up my laptop and paperwork into my arms, and jogged to catch up to her, glad to be alone again in the hallway as the others split into their assigned teams.

“Nicely done, Ally. You hold up well under fire.” Penelope muttered, sneaking a smirk in my direction as she walked and I shook my head in denial, feeling as if I’d barely managed to avoid drowning back there. “You give yourself too little credit. This team gives a serious grilling and not everyone can hack it. You did. Even from your own unit chief. He’s a real peach, aye?”

“Oh, you have no idea.”

\--⥈--

“Hey, double trouble. Anything fallen into your net?”

Morgan’s warm voice on the speakerphone filled Penelope’s remarkably quiet office, where I sat with my head in my hands. The feeling of waiting was suffocating and I was beginning to worry that even our combined experience wouldn’t be enough to catch this mystery attacker. Valeno seemed to be incredibly gifted at seeking out the best of every profession for his organisation.

“Just a huge pile of nothing. I don’t fail, Morgan. This is not a feeling that I’m used to and I don’t plan to get used to it!” Penelope pouted, seeming personally offended by the lack of response to our bait and I looked up to smile sympathetically at her. 

“Get used to it with this guy. He only hires the uncatchable.” I offered, revealing the bitterness that had begun to grow inside of me since I started on this case and Penelope huffed in a childish manner at this statement.

After a few more minutes of listening to Penelope talk to Morgan whilst I reviewed the logs of our previous contacts with our target, a bolt of inspiration struck me. I turned in my seat to face Penelope with wide eyes and she shushed Morgan as she honed in on my changed demeanour.

“Just before I spoke to you on the phone, I told Shepard that I thought we had an inside agent. It’s the only way that it made sense for Valeno to be avoiding everything.” I began, causing her to tense up in alarm, but she waited for me to finish. 

“What if they’re helping him to find staff? Every agency in the world has watch lists for people like you and I. If Valeno is working with someone inside Interpol, they would be able to recommend someone with the right skills and keep the hacker from coming up on our radar as a threat.” I thought aloud, setting Penelope into a typing spree as she pulled up countless agency lists for a search.

“They’d be right under our noses!” She exclaimed, setting up the parameters for a new scan of the lists immediately and I stared intensely at my logs to piece together details about the hackers style that we could use to identify them. “Okay, we know that they’re probably American. I’ll start with local names.” She explained for Morgan’s sake and it was clear that he was already fully invested in our guidance as he dove into adding information to our search.

“Valeno wouldn’t recruit somebody nearby. If he’s outsourcing, he likely hasn’t told them anything about what they’re doing. He’d want them distanced from the organisation. The less that they know, the less risk in using them. They won’t be near enough to see the missing girls on local news and he’s banking on them not watching anything further.” Morgan specified over the phone and I nodded along in agreement, as Penelope struggled to keep up with us.

“Then I’m looking at every other state? That’s a lot of names! We need to get more specific.” Penelope argued as her computer struggled to even load the mass of names that her search presented and I leapt into reeling off information that she could utilise.

“We know from their techniques that they are aggressive, impatient, likely seeking a challenge. The commands they use would indicate that they are self taught rather than formally educated, so rule out anyone with a relevant qualification. They don’t have a strong signature yet either, meaning that despite being talented, they are inexperienced so they wouldn’t have been on the watch list for long.” I rambled, moving to pace the room and Penelope keenly adjusted her criteria as I spoke. 

Over the speaker, I heard Reid seeming as if he were particularly surprised by the level of information that I was providing, before he provided a theory of his own.

“Aggressive and inexperienced? Statistically, it’s more common for these traits to appear in a young hacker. Someone who hasn’t matured enough to appreciate defensive methods.” Reid’s voice chimed from the phone and I stopped dead in my tracks.

“Very young. Their methods are disorganised, frantic. Penelope and I haven’t been able to predict them as they’re too chaotic. We thought it was a tactical choice, but from my experience in these kinds of circles, it’s highly likely to be a high schooler, probably a male with a superiority complex.” I theorised, feeling a crushing clarity and Penelope stopped her activity so that she could turn to face me with horror.

“Wait a second. You mean like the Rapture crew from our old forum?” She breathed, seeming disgusted that someone as young as the other hackers that we once worked alongside could be involved in something this dark. 

I practically fell into my seat as I flashed through screens in search of a specific log and an old memory of a particularly young male hacker in the Rapture group came to mind.

“Oh my god.” I muttered as I replayed the clip several times. “Penelope, look at this. This manoeuvre right here. I’ve only seen it used a few times. It’s an old method, definitely not taught officially by anyone. The only few people that I’ve ever seen use it have all had one thing in common-”

“They studied the Boston Phantom obsessively.” Penelope gasped, thinning her results down and having to fight through more red tape than I’d ever seen to unlock the records. 

“There definitely was a result here within the original content, but they were removed from the watch list six months ago and all our records of them were wiped clean.” She explained for our team members that were on the phone and I covered my mouth in shock. 

This small accusation confirmed the suspicion that I had held for some time now; someone in our team was feeding Valeno information. The call went silent for a moment as I imagined that Morgan and Reid were sharing the same realisation and Reid cleared his throat to question us, seeming somewhat less confident about technical matters.

“Is that a normal occurrence, Garcia? I thought once you were on a watch list, that was it. There was no way of returning to anonymity.” Reid queried, whilst Penelope busied herself with attempting to recover the files.

“That’s true. Unless you’re recruited as an agent.” She clarified, causing a chill to run down the length of my spine at this idea. “But nothing can be removed from my glorious all seeing skills. His name is James Miller. He’s fifteen years old and lives in Boston, Massachusetts.”

“Babygirl, you never fail to amaze me. You two are the dream team.” Morgan announced, causing Penelope to smirk in satisfaction. “Send over his details. Reid and I will pick him up now.” 

“Your wish is my command.” Penelope crooned, before the line abruptly cut off and she turned to fix me with an expression that sparkled with curiosity.

“Okay. What was that?” She asked, causing me to furrow my brows in confusion and I shrugged obliviously. “You just profiled! Alice, what are Interpol doing using you as an analyst? You should be  _ in the field _ .” She exclaimed, examining me with a new sense of wonder and I shuffled awkwardly on the spot.

“And I’m sure that if I’d been recruited by any method other than arrest, I probably would be.” I commented, fiddling with my hands and she seemed to struggle to understand the correlation between these two things. “Shepard and the others barely tolerate me as it is. They feel like they’ve been dumped with a criminal, rather than an asset.”

“You’re kidding! All of the best hackers come from a risky background, don’t they know that?” She argued, thoroughly frustrated by this attitude and I chuckled under my breath. “You can’t teach what we know how to do in any classroom. They need to get over themselves and realise how lucky they are to have you!”

\--⥈--

Penelope updated the BAU team and Shepard on our activities via video call, allowing me to avoid discussing my part in the situation in front of my already scowling unit chief. I was painfully aware of his disapproval for my opinion on anything that he deemed as outside of my role, but Penelope decided that it was important for me to be credited with the arrest of the hacker and ensured that she emphasised my work. 

I fidgeted in my seat, feeling bashful as she recounted the conversation and I was thankful for the webcam which dulled the power of Shepard’s glare. It seemed that the rest of the Interpol team weren’t present for the briefing and I was glad that I didn’t have to bear their scrutiny too.

“Good work. Both of you. Gideon is interviewing him shortly, so we’ll let you know what we can persuade him to reveal. In the meantime, we’ve seized all of his equipment and will be sending it over for you to analyse, Garcia. We need as much from it as possible.” Agent Hotchner announced, making me squirm from the praise and Penelope responded with  _ yes sir _ immediately. 

“Alice, pack your things. Once the agent has delivered the equipment, they’ll be bringing you to the PD to assist us here.” He added resolutely and I felt my back straighten at his order. I opened my mouth to question it, but before I could get a single word out Shepard interrupted.

“Absolutely not.” He argued, turning on my newfound advocate with evident fury in his posture, but the BAU chief remained completely unmoved.

“Alice assisted in both profiling and identifying the young man who we just arrested. This is the first viable lead that we’ve discovered. Her insight would be most useful alongside my team.” Hotchner suggested, almost causing my mouth to drop open in shock at his appreciation of me and I could feel Penelope fighting not to smile beside me. “With all due respect, she has a familiarity with this case which is not being utilised by keeping her remote from the investigation; not to mention the behavioural skills that she demonstrated today which are disregarded in her current role.”

“ _ With all due respect _ , Agent Hawthorne is an Interpol agent and I will dictate her activities. She is a technical analyst, not a field agent and does not have the relevant training to be based anywhere other than the office. Do I need to remind you that this is an Interpol investigation that your team is assisting on?” Shepard growled, stepping closer into his space and though I could tell that the BAU leader was angered by his disrespect, he retained his composure.

“Hawthorne. Assist with analysing the equipment.” He spat, looking toward the screen with an obvious disdain and I struggled to keep my voice even as my heart sunk.

“Yes, Sir.”


	5. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒆𝒏𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝑶𝒇 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒎

Penelope and I were on the edge of our seats as we waited for contact from the team who were currently raiding an address that we had discovered for them. She was visibly calmer than me, able to rely on the trust that she had built with her team, but I couldn’t imagine that it was possible for this case to ever come to a successful close. The tension hung heavily in the air between us as I wrung my hands together with anxiety and from the corner of my eye, I could tell that she was studying me.

“It must be hard to accept that you had someone on your own team working against you.” She muttered as she turned to face me fully with a sympathetic smile and I hummed thoughtfully. “How are you holding up?”

“I’m honestly frustrated. If I’d had the freedom to investigate properly, without everyone blocking me out, I could’ve found him sooner. We could’ve stopped this before so many girls were lost.” I admitted, feeling pressure in my chest as I considered all of the times that I had looked this person in the face and had no idea that they were responsible, sighing as I continued.

“I just can’t imagine how anyone who signed up for a job like this could allow something so awful to happen. It’s monstrous. I hope that the money Jackson pocketed was worth all of the lives that he destroyed.” I added bitterly and Penelope nodded in agreement.

“It’s horrific. The things that people will do for the right amount of money.” She commented solemnly and we lapsed back into silence as we continued to wait for some news from the team. 

The thought of this group of monsters finally coming to justice seemed to be too good to be true and I couldn’t stop imagining the BAU team storming an empty building in my mind.

“You should be there with them. They would never have found Jackson without you. You deserve to see this through.” Penelope muttered, revealing her annoyance with the situation and I was already clear of her disapproval for Shepard after our earlier conversation via webcam. 

Though Penelope was certain that Agent Hotchner would have discussed this incident in private, nothing had changed in my circumstances since and I had to assume that even if she was right, Shepard had held his ground about me.

“I wish that I was. I’d love to see his Valeno’s face when he realises that we’re still on his ass.” I grumbled, imagining the satisfaction that I would’ve got from finally seeing him in cuffs, but instead I tried to focus on the bigger picture. “I’ll settle for just having him behind bars, though.” 

Time felt as if it had almost slowed to a stop and though I appreciated that a raid of this size required a great deal of preparation and incredibly careful execution, I couldn’t help feeling that it was taking too long. My heart couldn’t survive another loss and I prayed for the safe recovery of the missing girls.

“I can’t sit here any longer. I need to move. How about I make you a cup of tea?” Penelope suggested as she got to her feet and forced a smile. “I’ll keep my phone on me and I can run back to the desk at record speed if needed.” She winked reassuringly and as I opened my mouth to answer her, the phone finally rang.

Penelope practically fell into her seat and almost sent the phone flying off her desk in her rush to answer it, and I felt my back straighten to the point that it was almost completely rigid.

“Garcia. We’ve got him.” Agent Hotchner’s voice announced over the phone and she gasped with excitement. My mouth fell open in shock and for a moment I was unsure if I had imagined his statement, as it seemed like a dream.

“And the girls?” I blurted, unable to wait a moment longer for an explanation and in the moments that it took for him to speak again I felt as if I couldn’t breathe.

“Most of the American victims are here. Some of them have already been moved on, but we’ve got enough records here to begin seeking them out, including detailed tracking of the last known address of every missing girl from Europe and their buyer details. You’ll be very busy with recovering them all once you get home, Agent Hawthorne.” He explained, a very subtle sense of understanding in his voice and I felt my lip begin to wobble with the strain of the tears that I held back.

“Thank you for letting us know, Sir.” Penelope responded for me, sensing that I could not manage it and the moment that the line disconnected, she pulled me into a hug, prompting tears to stream down my cheeks in relief.

“It’s finally over. We found him.” I struggled to say between gasps for air as the strain of the months of stress finally came crashing down over me. For the first time since I had started with Interpol, it felt as if all of the trauma and nightmares were worth it. I could finally say that ruining my own life had at least provided me the opportunity to accomplish things that I never could have managed as a lone hacker.

“ _ You _ found him, Alice. You saved those girls. I’m so proud of you.” Penelope praised, tears glistening in her eyes too as she sat back to smile at me and I sighed in an effort to calm myself.

“I couldn’t have done it without you.” I breathed, staring at her with an overpowering appreciation and her smile grew into a teasing grin. 

Though we’d managed to pull off a few insane covert operations as anonymous teenagers, they paled in comparison to what we had achieved today and I was struck with the reality of our joint growth in the last few years. 

“I’m glad that my genius is acknowledged at last.” She drawled, flashing me a playful wink before she released me from her grip and I sat back to wipe my face dry on my sleeves. “Anything for you, mon cherie.” 

“Tu es la meilleure.”  _ You’re the best _ . I crooned in response, noticing that my heart felt more at peace in her comfort than it had for a long time.

\--⥈--

Despite having the least luggage with me, I was the last of my team to finish packing up to leave, as Penelope found every excuse that she could to keep me for just a little longer. Shepard and the others were content to go ahead without me anyway and I was honestly pleased that I would not have to endure another awkwardly silent car journey with them.

Penelope arranged to drive me to the airport herself to allow us a chance for one final chatter and I headed out to the main office to find the BAU team each waiting to shake my hand. All except for Reid, who gave me another charmingly awkward smile and wave that had already become endearing to me. Just as I was about to leave, Agent Hotchner pulled me aside.

“I just wanted a chance to tell you that you did great work on this case. My team isn't easily impressed, but you’ve made it seem that way. I understand how difficult it can be for people recruited into agencies in the way that you were to integrate into this lifestyle.” He explained, as usual his expression sharing none of the warmth of his words and before I could say anything, he reached into his jacket pocket to pass me a card.

“If you ever run into roadblocks like this again, my line is always open for advice. You have good instincts. You deserve for your team to trust them, as ours does.” He offered as I examined the card to find his contact details and I felt my brows raise in shock.

“Th-thank you, Sir. That means a lot. Your team is outstanding.” I stuttered, struggling to find the words to express my gratitude for his kindness and he nodded curtly. He moved to walk away, then paused to turn to me again. 

“Oh, and Agent Hawthorne? Pack a go bag. You never know when you’ll need it.” He added, before strolling away and leaving me to notice that several members of the team were smiling at me from their desks. 

Just as when I arrived, I hesitated before pushing my way through the glass doors and this time, I had a heavy heart at the idea of leaving.

Penelope and I spent the entire journey to the airport catching up on our current lives, discussing our equally poor work life balance and absence of our social life. She was infuriated by my description of my work environment and I shared in her joy for how well she had settled into her team. 

Though our situations were contrasting, I didn’t harbour any jealousy for her, simply revelling in the delight of her happiness. After everything that she had been through, it warmed my heart to see her smile.

Our time together seemed to whizz past and before I knew it, it was time for us to part. As we strolled in the airport, Penelope clung to me protectively and I knew that this would be a remarkably difficult goodbye as I approached security. She pulled me into another lung crushing hug and I could hear her sniffing back tears.

“I don’t want you to go.” She whispered beside my ear and I smiled over her shoulder, as I shared her reluctance. “I always knew that we had a connection, even just chatting over the internet, but finally seeing you in person just feels so special. Where have you been all my life?” She whined dramatically, expressing the same bittersweet sentiment that I felt taking root in my chest and I pulled back to view her with fondness, taking in the vibrant details of her cheerful appearance.

“I feel the same, my darling. We will see each other again. I promise. I haven’t visited my dad in forever. I’m sure that when I get some time off, I can swing by to see you to make the trip worth doing.” I remarked, causing a smile to fill her tear stained face and I quickly dried her cheeks so that I wouldn’t start to cry in return. “Besides, you are always welcome to visit me. I could finally show you Paris!”

“Oh chérie, Paris n’arriverait pas à me gérer."  _ Oh honey, Paris couldn’t handle me _ . She winked, setting us both into giggles. “I’ll really miss having you here. Let me know if there’s anything I can to help with those Interpol bullies. Seriously, anything. My life destroying skills are only a call away.” She added, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes and I didn’t doubt for a moment the things that she would do if permitted.

“I will. Take care, Nels.”

\--⥈--

“Alice, I’ve heard rumours.”

The voice on the phone sounded thoroughly offended as I stepped out of the taxi and began to make my way into my apartment building. I wasn’t at all threatened by the statement, as it was exactly the kind of dramatic opening to calls that I often shared with this person and I simply shook my head with amusement.

“Merci.” I whispered, as a neighbour held open the door for me with a polite smile. 

“What rumours?” I yawned, stepping into the foyer with the sense that I could collapse on the spot from the dreadful jetlag and I thanked my lucky stars when the bright morning light was blocked out by the heavy door closing behind me.

“That you were in my neighbourhood this past few days and you didn’t even call me!” They clarified, causing my stomach to drop in annoyance at how quickly news travelled in my family. 

I had hoped to have the chance to enjoy a decent night of sleep, at least, before dealing with this and my brain struggled to even coordinate my way up the stairs with my case as I balanced the phone on my shoulder. 

“I’m supposed to be your best friend. How could you?!”

“Oh, Ricky. Don’t be so  _ dramatic _ . I was there for work. They don’t exactly leave us with time to entertain ourselves whilst we are there.” I rolled my eyes at the exaggerated sounds of disapproval that followed my words and couldn’t summon the energy to worry about this whilst I dragged my case along the hall.

“I am your  _ blood _ , Alice. I haven’t even seen you in years. Is it too much to ask to even just meet for a coffee at the airport, hmm?” Ricky argued, his naivety at the nature of my work causing me to chuckle in disbelief. 

I didn’t dare to mention how much he was behaving like the stereotype of a gay teenage boy at the moment for fear of the wrath that would follow, but at times he truly outdid himself with his levels of drama.

“You’re barely my blood, dear. We’re related by marriage, remember? Besides, I’ve actually seen you more recently than my own father, so you should consider yourself lucky.” I teased, busying myself with unlocking the door whilst he gasped with such audacity that I was worried he might actually pull something. “You’re my favourite cousin, if that makes you feel any better.” 

“I’m your  _ only _ cousin, Alley Cat. That doesn’t mean anything.” He responded sulkily and I could practically sense his pout despite all of the miles between us. “Did you at least catch some ‘big bad’ whilst you were here?” He enquired carefully over the sounds of me stumbling my way inside the apartment and I sighed with relief as the door swung closed behind me.

“The biggest of bads.” I muttered, feeling another wave of appreciation as I reminded myself of what we had achieved. 

My gaze roamed over my apartment, allowing my inner walls to fall down now that I was within my own space, until it landed on an unwelcome sight. Unable to wait even until I’d slept, I crossed the room and began tearing down all of the sheets of paper on my notice board that I had been using to research the case, throwing them into a box so that they would finally be out of sight.

“Well, that’s pretty cool.” Ricky commented casually over the phone and I smiled at the subtle pride that I caught in his voice. I knew that he respected me for the job that I did, when he wasn’t caught up in his own needs.

“Listen, hun. I’m so exhausted that I can hardly keep my eyes open. Let me get some sleep and we’ll have a video call later. I’ll fill you in on all of the new people that I met.” I offered, rubbing at my eyes in an attempt to keep them open long enough to make it to the bed and he groaned unenthusiastically in response. “Send both your mums my love. Speak soon.”

I flipped the phone closed and stumbled my way into my bedroom, finding it in a state of disarray from my rushed departure. My entire apartment was relatively bare, with little personalisation as I lived in a constant temporary state. I couldn’t help planning for everything to fall apart at any moment. This pattern was what I had come to expect out of life.

Throwing things aside to create some space on the bed, I practically collapsed face first into the covers, as months of exhaustion caught up to me.

\--⥈--

**PENELOPE’S POV**

Penelope’s heels tapped along the floor of the BAU office merrily, as she carried her fresh morning coffee to her desk in her glittery pink flask. As usual, she had arrived before everyone else and enjoyed having the space to herself to begin her day.

Three months had passed since Alice visited and even though she had already refilled the space that she had made available at her desk for her to work, it always felt as if something was missing now. She still loved her team, but couldn’t help feeling as if Alice had added something that was otherwise missing in her life. 

In an effort to combat this feeling, she’d placed a polaroid of her and Alice from their time together where her workspace had been, leaning against a decorative copy of the Alice In Wonderland book. 

The team was currently without a case and Penelope knew that JJ had worked until late last night. She often seemed to struggle with the effort choosing which of the many requests for assistance that landed on her desk every day would receive their attention next. Penelope didn’t envy JJ for this responsibility and was glad that she could simply busy herself with updating one of the custom pieces of software that she’d created for the FBI.

“Garcia. Hotch wants us all in the conference room. We’ve got a case.” JJ’s voice announced from the door and Penelope rolled her eyes at the timing. She’d barely managed ten minutes of peace before being interrupted, but forced a smile as she turned to nod at her.

The moment that she stepped into the conference room, she noticed Morgan’s absence and though she was deeply concerned, she knew from the team's demeanour that she wouldn’t have a chance to bring it up until after the briefing. Even Hotch seemed more tense than usual, if that were even possible and Penelope became nervous as to what about this case could have caused a reaction like this.

“Good morning, everyone. I’m sure you’ve noticed that we’re missing a member today.” Hotch began and Penelope was relieved to find that he addressed this straight away. “Morgan asked us to let you know that he was hospitalised the night before last for appendicitis. He’s out of surgery and assures me that he is doing well, but he will be in recovery for at least the next couple of days.” 

Though everything in Penelope’s body urged her to jump from the table and run to the hospital, she knew that her overbearing, anxious presence wouldn’t provide the relaxing environment that Morgan needed to heal. Besides, her small team was already missing someone and she sensed they would need her help. She willed herself to stay in her seat and pay attention to JJ’s presentation to find a way to ease their workload.

“Dulvey, Louisiana. The local PD have asked us to assist with a string of abductions spanning the past two months. Several of the first victims have been found alive, but in terrible condition, wandering remote areas. They haven’t been able to provide police with any details that could lead to the unsub. In fact, most of them hardly remember anything about what happened to them.” JJ explained as she began to explain the case and Penelope could hardly stand to look at the photos of what had been done to these girls.

“Memory loss as a result of trauma could be likely in one victim, but multiple girls is more likely to be drug related. Anything in their toxicology to indicate what the unsub is using?” Hotch questioned, causing Penelope to rub at her temples as she considered whether their victims missing memories were a mercy or a punishment. The way that JJ sighed before answering hinted that she was considering this same question.

“We’re still waiting for the results from the lab, but from the police reports, it seems clear that they’d been given something.”

There were a few moments of silence as the team flicked through the case files before them and Gideon slipped on his glasses, thinning his eyes at the screen.

“If he’s letting them go, he must be confident that they won't remember anything that could incriminate him. He couldn’t have gained this level of security in his routine without practice. There will be earlier victims, somewhere. We just need to find them. They could be the key.” Gideon analysed, earning collective sounds of agreement from around the table. “Have the police been able to establish any links between the victims?” He enquired, turning his attention to JJ with a focused expression and she shook her head before answering.

“Nothing at all. They are from multiple states, varying age and race demographics, different socioeconomic groups. The only thing that these victims have in common is that they are all female. The police are only just beginning to connect them, but otherwise, they’re drawing a blank.” JJ confirmed regretfully, seeming concerned by this troubling start to the case and it was clear from Reid’s fidgety behaviour that something in her response had caught his attention.

“That kind of deviation from a type is highly unlikely in an offender like this. It’s entirely possible that we are dealing with a team of unsubs, with varying sexual preferences. It would explain the sudden escalation in the number of victims. They’re fuelling each other's appetites, which could cause them to rapidly devolve into more brutal methods.” Reid chimed in, speaking in a hurried manner as usual and causing everyone to shuffle in their seats at this implication, whilst Gideon rubbed at his temples.

“We could have benefitted from Morgan’s expertise on this. We may be looking at an obsessive set of males who are attempting to recreate a specific fantasy.” Gideon commented, as Penelope stared at the information in front of her intensely, until an idea formed in her mind.

“Actually, Sir. I may know someone who can help.” She blurted, drawing the entire team's attention. “Alic-Agent Hawthorne from Interpol specialises in abductions. I’ve never known anyone as efficient at finding people.” She suggested, mentally keeping every part of her body crossed whilst Hotch considered her words.

“We are starting from scratch on this case, Hotch.” Gideon interrupted, seeming surprisingly gripped by Penelope’s suggestion. “We still have six girls missing and no guarantee that they will release any of them as they did the first few. We know that a pack typically escalates. Any expert help we can employ could make all the difference.” He added, before Reid cleared his throat to support him.

“Alice was instrumental in seeking out Valeno’s victims, even those who were trafficked at the very beginning of his leadership. It’s probable that her assistance would greatly increase the chances of recovering these women alive.” Reid suggested keenly and Penelope smiled at his enthusiasm for this idea.

“I’ll call Agent Shepard and ask to have her meet us at the Dulvey station. Everyone else, wheels up in thirty.”

\--⥈--

Penelope struggled to mask her disappointment as Alice joined the video call and could hardly believe that Interpol would only allow her to consult on this case remotely. It seemed utterly childish to her that they would restrict her friend’s progression so intensely and she knew that the rest of the team had been looking forward to her assistance too. 

As a result, Morgan had discharged himself from the hospital early, against medical advice, on the condition that he would only work from the local police station and he had already planned to act as Alice’s physical presence should she need anything investigated.

The BAU team joined the call from the police station and were deeply involved in a conversation about the psychology of the suspect, which mostly went over Penelope’s head. She was immensely distracted by how exhausted Alice looked, even on camera and couldn’t help wondering whether the situation within Interpol had worsened since her visit. There were deep circles under her eyes, which despite her best efforts to conceal it, were lacking their usual sparkle. Her skin appeared paler than usual and she was dressed modestly, as if she were afraid to show any skin.

A door opened behind Alice, drawing Penelope’s attention and a tall, bulky man with dark hair entered the room. He approached her desk with confidence, behaving as if he absolutely belonged in her office and was not remotely concerned about interrupting the call as he placed himself uncomfortably close to the screen.

“Good Afternoon, Alice.” He drawled as he closed into her space and Penelope noticed that her friend immediately stiffened at the sound of his voice, thick with a French accent. “Shepard asked me to bring you these and to check if there was anything that I could do to assist you with this  _ ghastly _ case?” He dropped a small stack of files on her desk, causing her to startle at the sound and she glanced up at him doubtfully.

“Thank you, Vidal. I’m quite alright with the BAU team’s assistance.” Alice answered curtly, visibly uncomfortable as she motioned to the screen, as if she were reminding him that there were others watching. 

Instead of responding to her awkwardness by leaving, the man perched on the edge of her desk, blocking her partly from the view of the camera with his back. By now, the rest of the BAU team were beginning to take notice of the strange interaction as conversation between them dulled down to nothing and they all stared at the screen with analytical expressions.

“My dear Alice. How many times must I ask you to call me Étienne?” He crooned, leaning further into her space, only for her to lurch away. 

A chill ran down Penelope’s spine at the way that he smirked at her startled friend and though she couldn’t put her finger on exactly what it was, she knew that something was wrong as she paid close attention to everything that he said when he continued. 

“In all honesty, Shepard only told me to drop the files, actually. I gathered some intel on a similar case a while ago as a case study. I’m quite confident that I could assist you with it. You don’t have to work alone.”

“I’m not  _ alone _ , Vidal. As I said before, there is a team leading the investigation who I am assisting. Now, if you’ll excuse me you’re interrupting a briefing with that very team.” Alice’s voice grew firmer, but the anxiety behind it was still clear, spreading to her face as she forced herself to meet his eyes. “Is there anything else that you needed?”

A snide expression crossed the male agent’s face and Alice gulped subtly. He gradually rose to his feet, towering over her for several minutes intimidatingly and eventually strolled toward the door.

“My apologies for the intrusion, Madame. You know where I am if you need...anything.” He sneered, before finally departing and Penelope exchanged meaningful looks with each of her colleagues as they noticed how shaken Alice seemed by the interaction. 

The tension in the office where the BAU team worked was clear, even over video call as they silently shared concern and Penelope wished that she was present with them so that she could better judge their reactions.

“Sorry about that. It’s difficult to get any peace here when you’re shared between multiple teams. Where were we?” Alice breezed, attempting to conceal her emotions behind false enthusiasm, but her lack of energy left her performance feeling flat. “Ah, location. Have you pinpointed anything that could indicate his comfort zone?”

Though the briefing resumed, resulting in roles being assigned to each member of the team, Penelope could tell that everyone was still on edge from what they had witnessed. As Hotch began confirming plans, another voice interrupted from Alice’s end of the call.

“Hawthorne. Shepard wants to see you in his office.”

“No rest for the wicked.” Alice commented with a weak smile toward the camera and the way that she cleared her throat as she began to gather her things indicated that she was straining to keep her voice even.

“Sorry guys. I’ll get this over with and review the files from Vidal for anything useful. Give me a call when you’re finished following your leads, or if you need anything at all.” She instructed, before disconnecting from the call. 

Hotch and Gideon wasted no time in rushing from the room to complete their tasks, but Morgan and Reid remained in place, seeming equally as dazed as Penelope felt.

“Babygirl, your friend told you anything about that agent that delivered the case files?” Morgan enquired, leaning closer to the camera to address her, whilst Reid stared into space, seeming as if he was deep in thought.

“No, Sugar. I’ve never heard his name before. She said she wasn’t close to anyone at Interpol.” Penelope answered, fidgeting awkwardly as she replayed the interaction in her mind and felt the hairs on her arms stand on end. “Alice doesn’t act like that, Morgan.”

“She certainly did seem on edge, that’s for sure. We can't read too much into it without knowing more about their relationship, though. We don’t poke our noses into each other's lives without cause and we don’t profile each other, you know that.” Morgan advised carefully, seeming reluctant to inspire any action, but it was still painfully obvious that he was concerned. 

Penelope chewed on her lip, as she considered researching the agent in question and couldn’t decide whether it was wise to confide in the other two about her intentions. 

“She could simply have been trying to keep her private life that way.” Morgan added firmly, as if reading her mind and she sighed in frustration.

“No way. If she was involved with anyone she would have told me. Alice is terrible at covering her feelings for anyone!” Penelope insisted and she noticed that Reid seemed to pay close attention to her assertion that Alice was available, before quickly attempting to cover it.

“The manner in which they addressed each other was contradictory. He referred to her as Alice, but she repeatedly responded formally. She was attempting to create distance, indicating that she was uncomfortable with their physical closeness. Actually, many of Vidal’s seemingly doting postures seemed to be specifically chosen to display a power imbalance. He wanted to dominate the interaction.” Reid spouted out analysis as if he could no longer contain his criticism and she smiled at his support, whilst Morgan leaned back in his seat.

“So he’s a creep. It’s unfortunate of an agent, but not a crime.” Morgan shrugged, attempting to seem careless, when it was painfully obvious that he was uncomfortable with the display that they’d just witnessed. “I’m sure that Alice can handle herself.” He asserted with a smile and before Penelope could disagree, Gideon poked his head back into the room.

“What are you two waiting for? We’ve got a case to work.” He insisted, glancing between them both with confusion and when neither of them rushed to join him, he re-entered the room properly. “You’re worried about the Interpol girl?” He suggested, causing both men to look up at him in surprise. 

“Doesn’t take a profiler to see that her colleague is a classic narcissist, who is fascinated by her dismissive attitude towards him. It is problematic. Unfortunately, they are both Interpol members of staff and so it’s an Interpol matter. Unlike this case, which requires your attention. Reid, you’re with me. Let’s go.”


	6. 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My beta is detail oriented and so if you would also like outfit/hair etc details, the links are below :)
> 
> Outfit: https://pin.it/4NGjNqX
> 
> Hair: https://pin.it/5B21SkA

**Eᴘɪsᴏᴅᴇ:** Pʀᴇ Sᴇᴀsᴏɴ 1

I fiddled with my hands nervously, sitting at Shepard’s desk with my stomach doing flips and even as I avoided meeting his eyes, I could feel him scrutinising me. He hadn’t spoken a word since I entered and my anxiety was running wild imagining what he could have called me in for. As far as I was aware, I hadn’t done anything that would require a reprimand and I couldn’t imagine that he would be requesting to see me for any level of helpful mentoring.

“We need this consultation with the BAU wrapped up quickly. Our teams here have plenty of cases that require your attention.” He began, his voice sharp as he addressed my liaison with the BAU and his dissatisfaction at them requesting my assistance was abundantly clear. 

“Vidal believes that he can assist in speeding up the process. I’m assigning him alongside you.” He clarified, beginning to flip through other paperwork disinterestedly and I felt my eyes grow wide at this instruction.

“That won't be necessary, Sir. As you said, we’re already busy with our own cases and I’m sure that Vidal would be missed. I can manage this consultation on my own.” I answered, feeling a lump rising in my throat as I spoke. 

This was the last position that I wanted to find myself in, caught between two people who intimidated me and I had to stand my ground to protect myself from the person who I felt to be an actual threat to my safety.

“That wasn’t a request, Hawthorne.” Shepard glanced back up at me irritably, his expression one of sheer disbelief and I chewed on my lip anxiously. 

“Vidal is incredibly experienced and one of very few people in this office who would voluntarily support you with a case, as I’m sure you are aware. It would be unwise to refuse your only ally.” He grilled, studying me curiously and I sighed as I struggled to find the words to address my predicament.

“I’m sure that he is a very skilled agent, Sir. However, I would prefer not to work in his company, especially alone.” I stated in a small voice, feeling insecurity creeping up on me from the intense manner that he was watching me. 

Shepard tilted his head in surprise, as if he couldn’t imagine anyone, much less a woman, declining the offer to work with Vidal and I shook my head. It was typical for a man with such a superiority complex to be oblivious to the way that Vidal made women feel, but no less frustrating to encounter.

“I don’t want to take this any further, Sir. I am trying to be professional and to make choices that will allow me to work to the best of my ability. Vidal’s behaviour is inappropriate enough to absolutely be considered as harassment and instead of reporting it, I am saving him the embarrassment of such an accusation by simply requesting that our assignments are kept separate.” I elaborated, making every effort to ensure that my tone didn’t sound the least bit like a threat, but rather a peace offering. Every word that I spoke drained me of courage, but I forced myself to continue and Shepard thinned his eyes at me in disapproval.

“Do you have any idea how much paperwork a report of that nature would cause me? Not to mention that it would destroy the man’s career.” He stated accusingly, as if the entire issue were my fault and I struggled to maintain my strength in the face of his judgement. Of course he would blame me for inconveniencing him, rather than the person who was actually causing the problem. 

“I cannot abide two agents in my team that can’t be assigned together. We are all adults here, dealing with matters of national security. This is not a classroom. You need to figure this out between you. You can make a start on that during this case.” He added firmly, unwilling to compromise on his earlier instruction, as if I hadn’t just reached out to him for help in a completely reasonable manner and I furrowed my brows in confusion.

“And if I file an official complaint, instead?” I suggested carefully, burying the terror that I felt for his reaction and for a few moments, the room fell silent as he scowled at me. 

The air around me felt hot, my clothes suffocating as I battled with the anxiety that screamed in the face of his doubt. It wasn’t the first time that I hadn’t been believed, but it was every bit as heart-breaking as it had been when I was a teenager.

“Hawthorne. You didn’t earn this position. You were sent here against our advice and have been incredibly fortunate to find yourself in a job, instead of a cell. Consider very carefully whether you wish to make an enemy of me.”

\--⥈--

If I rolled my eyes any harder, I was pretty sure that they would disappear into the back of my head, never to be seen again. 

Vidal had made himself entirely comfortable both in my office and the video call with the BAU, and I could hardly get a word in edgeways between his supposedly expert opinions. His presence was suffocating, as he always chose to work within my personal space and there was no effective way of containing him to a single part of the room.

The strain was clear even in the rest of the team, who already seemed tired by his overbearing suggestions and general disregard of anyone else’s opinion. It was painfully clear how little he thought of our American counterparts and I began to realise that he had little regard for the science of behavioural analysis at all. 

I rubbed at my temples in an effort to concentrate, feeling immensely distracted by my own stress and was acutely aware that each and every minute that we wasted lowered the chances of ever recovering these girls alive. I almost jumped out of my seat at the sudden contact on my face and found that Vidal was pushing back my hair, his body alarmingly close to mine.

“Try not to stress, _ma poupée_. It would be a terrible crime to cause wrinkles in such a pretty face.” He muttered in a manner that I was sure he intended to be seductive, but unintentionally revealed a level of misogyny that caused a wave of disgust to pass through my entire body. 

Addressing me as a doll was a frightening insight into how he saw me, as a fragile inanimate object that he could possess and a shiver ran down my spine at the thought.

“People are suffering. I have every right to be stressed if I want to!” I spat in frustration, fidgeting to create as much space between us as I could, which was limited as I was trapped between him and the wall. 

Everything about the way that he interacted with me felt like a trap and my reactions were often similar to that of a caged animal. 

“Any luck with the interviews of the first two girls?” I enquired, as I addressed the webcam and the team seemed equally as frazzled by what they had just witnessed as I felt.

“We tried guiding them through a cognitive interview, but they weren’t able to recover any memories.” Morgan explained evenly, his tone seeming distracted and I sighed in disappointment. “Toxicology indicates that they were dosed with rohypnol. They also found some traces of chloroform on their skin. The unsubs must be using the chloroform to subdue them. They might even use it a second time to ensure that they don’t wake up when they’re being taken to the dump site. They’re planning ahead for these girls to be released, but they don’t want to take any chances that they could guide us to wherever they are holding them.”

“You believe there to be something that connects these girls,  _ oui _ ? Have you investigated their employment records?” Vidal interrogated and I battled to keep myself from rolling my eyes again. 

Though I had no doubt that he could be useful, his lack of faith in the team meant that rather than lending us his expertise, he was attempting to make us rehash steps that had already been completed at the beginning of the investigation and I tired of his implied judgement.

“I have dug into every aspect of these girls' lives. There's absolutely nothing that links them together. It’s like they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.” I answered thoughtfully, staring at the data with desperation and felt as if I were missing something glaringly obvious.

“Perhaps it  _ is _ as simple as chance. The suspect simply has chosen a hunting ground and is taking any woman who crosses it alone?” Vidal suggested, completely disregarding all of the profiling that had been done this far and I couldn’t bring myself to address his ignorance again. Fortunately, Reid cleared his throat and cleaned closer to the webcam.

“Typically, this type of offender would not leave his selection of victims completely to chance. When dealing with a sexual sadist, the fantasy is a core factor of their MO. Who they target is every part as important as the act itself. Due to the deviation in victimology, it’s highly probable that we are looking for a multi ethnicity group.” Reid explained, rescuing me from having to explain again that there was more to profiling than simply theorising at random and I was relieved when he continued, allowing me a few moments of peace from Vidal’s invasive suggestions. 

“Statistically, only 17% of sexual sadists will choose to work alongside another person. They wouldn’t want to risk someone else ruining the fantasy. These unsubs defy almost all regular patterns for this type of crime.”

“Is it possible that is because  _ you people _ are looking for the wrong type of person, hmm?” Vidal accused, looking directly at the camera with disdain and I bit my lip in an effort to contain my anger at his attitude. 

“Who is to say what kind of sexual preference these sick men would have? They could have an interest in women of many kinds. Why only pursue one kind of woman, when you can conquer them all,  _ non _ ? You are limiting your options based on the opinion of one young man!” He ranted, indicating towards Reid dismissively and I felt my patience snap.

“ _ Doctor _ Reid has not formed his opinion based on his own imagination. These statistics come from in depth studies of these types of offenders and are our best tool for identifying who it is that could commit a crime of this nature.” I snapped, sitting up to view him with frustration and he widened his eyes at me as I fell into a rant. 

“It is absolutely counterproductive to simply guess at circumstances, rather than using the evidence that is before us. Each and every detail is a piece of the puzzle, some more important than others. This team are the experts at identifying them, such as the fact that not all the victims are white indicating multiple unsubs, one of which is also not white, so I would suggest that you learn from them, Vidal. It is a known fact that sexual predators almost never offend outside of their own race. Look it up!” I lectured, my words falling out in a bitter tone before I could stop myself and he simply stared back at me in complete shock.

“Excuse me.” I blurted in embarrassment. 

I could feel the eyes of the team on me as even the room that they sat in fell silent and my cheeks flushed with heat at my blatant defence of Reid specifically. My gaze automatically sought him out, noticing that he seemed particularly shocked and even bashful at the attention, only worsening my humiliation. I jumped to my feet instinctively and rushed from the room to calm myself.

\--⥈--

The last few months had been intensely stressful, as I struggled to balance the importance of keeping my job and keeping my sanity. I knew that I couldn’t approach Shepard for help again. If anything, I worried that would only cause him to schedule me to work with Vidal more, as he seemed to be under the impression that exposure to each other would solve the problem, when in reality it was only worsening the situation. 

My anxiety felt constant and it was invading my dreams on a regular basis. Most of the time, I had the sensation that I was being watched, even when at home and I didn’t seem to be able to shake it.

A knock at the door pulled me from my thoughts and I turned sharply to find an unfamiliar woman standing in the doorway to my office. She was brunette and pretty, with a kind expression and I couldn’t help noticing how starkly she contrasted with any members of my assigned teams. Though she had a strength about her, everything in her demeanour seemed warm and welcoming in a way that stood out in our often cold working environment.

“Sorry. I hope I’m not interrupting.” She wore a friendly smile as she stepped into the room and I remained suspiciously wary of her, unsure what she could want from me. “I have a search that I need doing, but all of my techs seem to have gone home for the night. Yours was the only office with the light still on.”

“Oh, yeah. Habit. I pretty much live here nowadays.” I answered awkwardly, feeling as if I were being lured into some kind of trap as I’d grown accustomed to being shunned by everyone. The appearance of a random stranger who addressed me like any other person seemed entirely too good to be true. 

“What can I do for you?” I asked, prompting her to hand me a piece of paper with a list of criteria.

I turned back to my desk and began setting up the parameters on my various systems, feeling relieved to focus on work rather than the way that she studied me with interest. It occurred to me how unusual it was for anyone else to be in the office at this time of night and began to wonder if she was simply a workaholic, or if she was avoiding something too.

“I, umm...I actually hoped that I would get a chance to speak to you at some point, Hawthorne.” She admitted, settling herself against the wall to ensure that she left me plenty of personal space and I glanced at her questioningly over my shoulder. The fact that she’d taken the time to learn my name before coincidentally bumping into me as the last person in the office made the hairs on my arms stand on end. 

“I’m working with a new agent who was transferred to my team recently and I’m led to believe that the two of you are close. His name is Étienne Vidal.”

My stomach instinctively lurched at the name and as I could feel her analysing my reactions, I battled to keep my nerves hidden. Thoughts raced through my mind as I struggled to decide how to address this and part of me was curious as to exactly what was being said around the office about him and I.

“I wouldn’t explain it that way.” I muttered, fidgeting in my seat and the other agent thinned her eyes at me. “I’ve worked a few cases with him and he’s a very friendly man, but I really wouldn’t say that I know him at all.” I answered dismissively as I returned my attention to printing out the results that she had requested and she sighed thoughtfully, allowing us to fall into silence for a few moments whilst I worked.

“You’re not the only one to describe him as friendly. There are several women across his previous teams who have used the same words. Some even say overly-friendly.” She explained carefully and I avoided meeting her eyes as I considered this.

“It doesn’t seem like any higher management is interested in addressing it. I would report it myself, but thanks to my family background he’s always appropriate with me. None of the others are confident enough to talk about it openly. All I need is for one woman to speak up and I could protect them all.” She added, her voice growing passionate as she spoke and I rushed to grab the results sheet, passing it to her with a weak smile.

“I wish that I could help, but as I said, I don’t really know him.” I responded firmly, holding my ground against the prying conversation and she smiled sympathetically at me as she took the paper. Straightening up, she pulled a card from her pocket and handed it to me.

“If you think of anything that could be useful, my line is always available.” She emphasised, her kind eyes boring into my face as I stared at the card, feeling immediately conflicted.

Although I desperately wanted for the harassment to stop, I was afraid of the power that Shepard held over my life and knew all too well the dangers of rejecting men like Vidal. Subconsciously, I ran a finger along the scar on my lip and flinched at the memory that popped into my mind. 

“Prentiss?” I called after the woman, reading her name from the card and she paused in the doorway to look back at me. “Thank you. It will help these women a lot to know that somebody cares.”

\--⥈--

I rubbed at my eyes as I battled to stay awake and flicked the page on my calendar to July. Two months had passed since Prentiss began quietly investigating Vidal and things were only continuing to grow worse. He’d progressed from leaving flowers in my office, to just last night having them delivered to my apartment and as a result, I’d been unable to sleep.

The entire night had passed with me staring at the door in a state of terror and I was already beginning to recognise signs of hypervigilance in my behaviour. I knew that I was spiralling as a result of my past trauma, but felt completely powerless to stop it and had already considered running away many times. 

An alert popped up on my computer and the moment that I clicked it, Penelope’s smiling face filled my screen in a video call.

“Well, hello my little pumpkin pie! I am here on your screen as the ultimate bearer of wonderful news!” She declared, her enthusiasm soothing my nerves and encouraging a rare smile from me. “We have a case that requires your expertise and our very snazzy leader has pulled enough strings to have you assigned to it.”

“Another consultation? I’m sure Shepard will be delighted.” I remarked, pushing back my scruffy hair from my face and feeling immediately stressed at the idea that Shepard might punish me simply for being requested again. I glanced back up at the screen nervously and noticed that her expression only grew more smug.

“Au contraire, mon chérie. Even Interpol’s own Satan can’t stop this one. The request for our help has come from the top military brass and they’ve demanded that we bring the best. And when it comes to abductions, that’s you. So pack your bags, Beautiful, because you’re coming to visit.” She announced, waving her hands around in a little cheer and I stared back at her in disbelief. She was clearly confident in the arrangements to be presenting it in this manner, but I couldn’t imagine for a moment that Shepard would allow me out of his sight.

“I hate to break it to you, Nels, but Shepard will never release me for duty.” I advised regretfully as I fidgeted in my seat, wishing that I could seize the opportunity to get as far from this office for a couple of days, but instead of looking discouraged, Penelope beamed.

“Shepard, Schmepard. It’s already been authorised by his superior’s superior.” She flaunted, seeming thoroughly impressed with herself and I felt my mouth drop open in shock. I couldn’t believe that anyone would bother going to such lengths simply to secure my services and failed to even form a response. 

“Can I get a ding dong, the witch is dead?! Now, I hope you took Hotch’s advice and packed a go back because you have a plane to catch. We’ll see you there!”

\--⥈--

It felt strange to say that a sleeping pill induced semi-coma that spanned across two flights was the best sleep that I’d had in months, but it was true. For the first time in ages, I didn’t have to worry about anyone following me and the relief of knowing that, at least for a short time, I was out of Interpol’s reach was incredible. 

Unlike my previous visit where I was accompanied by a team, I was taken to my hotel first and given the opportunity to shower, change my clothes and generally make myself presentable, before having to meet the team at a nearby military base.

I changed into a pair of dark grey, checked capri trousers, a plum coloured turtleneck top and my trusty black, high top converses. Though I would deny it if ever questioned, knowing that I would likely see Reid again motivated me to apply slightly more makeup than usual in an effort to conceal the months of sleep deprivation that I’d endured and I pulled my long, brunette hair into a half up, half down style, before adding a small ribbon to the back.

Penelope called to confirm that I had now passed the necessary security checks to be allowed onto the base and that a driver was being sent to collect me as we spoke. I rushed to pack a small satchel with my glasses, phone and a few other necessary bits, grabbed the case full of equipment that I’d travelled with and made my way down to the foyer to meet my driver.

Flying into California instead of meeting the team in Virginia had extended my flight time by a fair amount, but also allowed me to arrive not far behind them. I knew that I could count on Penelope to have already made a start on securing us with a work space, after she had briefed me that the leading sergeant had insisted that access to their systems could only be granted on site. It seemed strange to know that even Penelope had been bought along because of this, but at least it reassured me that I was right to have been included in joining them here.

A young agent met me in the hotel reception, taking my case as he led me to a large black SUV that practically screamed FBI. I hopped into the back, feeling too awkward to ride shotgun with a stranger and the agent remained professionally quiet on the journey whilst I busied myself with studying the case files again. 

Inwardly, I was on edge, as I knew that the stakes of this case were especially high when dealing with someone as powerful as the father of our missing girl and I hoped that I would be able to meet the team's expectations of me.

The face of the victim stared up at me from the photo, tugging on my heartstrings. She was only thirteen years old, raised in a military family without a mother and now, she had been taken by someone who seemed to have a grudge against her father. It made me furious to see children blamed for the choices of adults and as I felt a fire burning in my stomach, I knew one thing for certain; I would do everything in my power to bring this girl home. 


End file.
